The Score: Intel, Home Depot, Meta and More Stocks That Defined the Week -- WSJ

Dow Jones
Aug 23

By Francesca Fontana

The Score is a weekly review of the biggest stock moves and the news that drove them.

Home Depot

Home Depot is rolling back its previous plan to keep prices steady in the face of tariffs and economic turmoil.

The home-improvement chain on Tuesday posted disappointing quarterly results, but backed its annual outlook. The company also posted a rise in same-store comparable sales.

Home Depot said that it planned some modest price increases after saying in May it would keep prices steady. The company said it was seeing consumers delay larger renovations due to economic uncertainty and high interest rates.

Home Depot shares rallied 3.2% Tuesday.

CSX

Railroad operator CSX is facing pressure from an activist investor.

Activist hedge fund Ancora Holdings told CSX it should pursue a deal with a rival or replace its chief executive if it doesn't, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

The hedge fund, which had also agitated at fellow East Coast carrier Norfolk Southern, said it is prepared to launch a proxy fight for board seats later this year if CSX doesn't heed its advice.

The pressure comes just weeks after Union Pacific struck a $71.5 billion deal to acquire Norfolk Southern to create the first transcontinental railroad operator in the U.S.

CSX shares gained 1.5% Tuesday.

Target

Will a new CEO be able to stop Target's sales slump?

On Wednesday, Target posted its 11th consecutive quarter of flat or falling sales and announced that lifelong employee Michael Fiddelke would steer a turnout effort. Brian Cornell, who has held the top job for 11 years, will become executive chairman of the board, the company said.

Target has been losing out to such rivals as Walmart and Amazon.com, as shoppers complain of Target's high prices and its messy, understocked stores.

Target shares tumbled 6.3% Wednesday.

La-Z-Boy

The furniture maker's fiscal first-quarter profit missed expectations, dented by lower foot traffic in its stores and weaker sales at its modern-furniture brand Joybird.

For the current quarter, La-Z-Boy forecast sales of $510 million to $530 million, below analyst expectations of $532.2 million.

The results come as furniture companies continue to contend with weak demand, though some players say the industry has reached a turning point. Earlier this month, Wayfair Chief Executive Niraj Shah said the industry is now showing stability, and the retailer swung to an unexpected quarterly profit.

La-Z-Boy shares tumbled 12% Wednesday.

Intel

Japan's SoftBank agreed to invest $2 billion in Intel, boosting the U.S. chip maker's stock.

On Monday, Intel announced SoftBank's purchase of roughly 87 million shares at $23 each, a slight discount to the day's $23.66 closing price.

The investment makes the Japanese firm Intel's sixth-largest shareholder, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Intel shares jumped 7% Tuesday.

Then, on Friday, President Trump said the U.S. government is taking a nearly 10% stake in Intel, capping a two-week frenzy in Washington over the future of the company.

Intel shares gained 5.5% Friday, and are now up 25% so far in August.

Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms has frozen hiring in its artificial-intelligence division after spending months scooping up AI researchers and engineers, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.

The hiring freeze, which went into effect the previous week and coincides with a broader restructuring of the group, also prohibits current workers from moving across teams inside the AI division. The duration of the freeze wasn't communicated internally.

While all of the top AI companies have hired aggressively this year, Meta has most often pushed the pace of the talent war, offering prized researchers pay packages worth nine figures.

Meta shares fell 1.2% Thursday.

Our weekly markets news roundup is now part of the WSJ's What's News podcast. Host Francesca Fontana discusses the biggest stock moves of the week and the news that drove them. Check out What's News in Markets at wsj.com/podcasts or wherever you listen.

Write to Francesca Fontana at francesca.fontana@wsj.com.

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 22, 2025 17:17 ET (21:17 GMT)

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